Daytime owls

FIND a bit of rough ground: coarse grassland, a tract of wet, marshy land with fen vegetation, the edge of a heath or higher moor where heather and grass mix, or a nice piece of ancient downland pasture. There may be nothing – or there might be something mysterious flying low over the far edge, tilting and turning, now and then dipping to the ground.

If you are lucky and there is a good ‘crop’ of voles, you might see an influx of owls. Daytime fliers will be one of two species: Barn Owl or Short-eared Owl.

The former tends to be around all the time in favoured areas, whereas Short-eared comes and goes, being much more nomadic and responding to the temporary availability of food.

Barn Owl flashes white below and looks rather bright ochreyellow above, and it has a slightly short-winged look. One will often hover briefly before diving head first into the grass.

Short-eared Owl looks a little more sandy brown, with a buff or ochre breast above a whiter belly. The most obvious feature will be a dark ‘wrist’ patch before a large clear patch of bright buff towards the wing-tip. Short-eared Owls don’t hover or dive in quite the same way as Barn Owl, but will often drop feet first onto prey.

If you see one head on, a Barn Owl shows a white face, heart shaped, with a dark patch around each eye, while the eyes look black. Short-eared Owl has a rounder facial disk, with a broad blackish patch across each eye, which looks gleaming yellow. A perched Short-eared will often show the sensitivity of its eyes, with the one in shade showing a markedly larger pupil than the pinpoint of the other one in the sun.

These are both great birds, well worth seeking out. Rob Hume